The interior life has a particular opportunity to grow when adverse situations arise. And for the soul there is no greater obstacle than the one created by its own miseries and by its laxity and lack of love. But the Holy Spirit teaches us and urges us in these circumstances to react in a supernatural way, with an act of contrition: Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am a sinner13. St. Francis de Sales teaches that we should feel strong with such ejaculations, made with acts of love and sorrow, with desires of a lively reconciliation so that, by means of them, we entrust ourselves to his merciful Heart14. Acts of contrition are an effective means of spiritual progress.
To ask for forgiveness is to love, it is to contemplate Christ more and more disposed to understanding and mercy. And since we are sinners,15 our path will be filled with acts of sorrow, of love, which fill the soul with hope and new desires to resume the path of holiness. It is necessary to return to the Lord again and again, without discouragement and without anguish, even if there have been many times in which we have not responded to Love. Divine mercy is infinite, and encourages us to return with new commitment, with renewed hope. We must do as the prodigal son, who, instead of staying there, far away, in a strange country, ashamed, living badly, coming to himself, said: ... I will arise and go to my father16.
"Human life is, in a certain sense, a constant return to our Father's house. To return through contrition (...).
"God waits for us, like the father in the parable, with outstretched arms, even if we do not deserve it. Our debt does not matter. As in the case of the prodigal son, we need only to open our hearts, to long for our Father's home, to marvel and rejoice at God's gift of being able to call us and to be, in spite of so much lack of correspondence on our part, truly his children "17. The Lord never abandons us. He always welcomes us, comforts us and moves us to begin again, with more love, with more humility.
Our weaknesses help us to seek divine mercy, to be humble. And to grow in this virtue is to take many steps in the interior life. All the virtues benefit when we are more humble. If at times we find ourselves lacking in correspondence in the face of so many graces received, if we have not been as faithful to the Lord as he expected, we should confidently turn to him with a contrite heart: Create in me a pure heart, O God; renew within me a right spirit18.
Many times we should think of those things that, even if they are small, separate us from God. And we will be moved to sorrow and contrition, which bring us closer to him
Thus the interior life is enriched not only by obstacles but also by weaknesses, mistakes and sins. And if it is more difficult for us to begin again, let us turn to Mary, who makes easy the way that leads to her Son. Let us ask her to help us today to make many acts of contrition. Perhaps we can use the same prayer of the tax collector: Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am a poor sinner. Or the prayer of King David: Cor contritum et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies: You will not despise, O God, a contrite and humiliated heart19. In a particular way, it will help us to repeat ejaculatory prayers when we see the walls of a church, knowing that there, in person, is Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, the Source of all mercy.
Our Lady, who is the Mother of grace, mercy and forgiveness, will always enkindle in us the hope of reaching the ambitious goal of becoming saints; let us place in her hands the fruit of this time of personal prayer, convinced that to those who correspond to grace, even more grace will be given.
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